Archery predates recorded history and is believed to have been developed between about 10,000 and 9,000 BC. Since that time, there has been a need and motivation to improve accuracy of projected arrows. One factor that is known to negatively impact accuracy is “target panic.” Target panic is generally described as any loss of control during the shooting process, particularly at the point or moment of release of an arrow. Specific common manifestations of target panic include not being able to reach anchor before releasing the arrow, release of the arrow before the desired aim, anxiety during the process of aiming, the aim being locked off of the bullseye, jerking the bow to aim to coincide with release, not being able to let go of the arrow, flinching upon release, a high state of anxiety the closer the archer is to aiming and releasing the arrow, and movements/muscle contractions just prior to release of the arrow.
Shock anticipation is believed to be a primary cause of target panic. Shock anticipation is essentially a subconscious response (e.g. a “flinch”) in anticipation of pressure or impact. With shooting activities, the recoil of a firearm and the release of a tensioned bow string are two examples of impacts that can induce this subconscious response. The response often manifests as a flinch or movement prior to the release of a bowstring (for example). Of course, when firing a projectile, even subtle movements can result in significant reductions in accuracy. “Linked bracing” is a term used to describe these human muscle movements that immediate precede or are concurrent with the firing of an arrow (for example).
Various devices have been provided that attempt to overcome target panic and linked bracing by preemptively sending information to a user or archer. U.S. Pat. No. 3,097,624 to Bergquist, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety, discloses a bow pull indicator with a steel member that is operable to emit an audible sound upon a certain amount of deflection on the limb of a bow. Bergquist, however, fails to disclose various novel devices, features, and methods of the present disclosure.
In archery, proper shooting comprises drawing a bow to an anchor point on an archer's face, aiming the bow and releasing an arrow. At first the physical processes of shooting the bow are done very cognitively and very slowly while the archer learns. Over time, the process of myelination of neural pathways and imprinting of motor programs within the brain occurs every time the archer repeats the process. After a large number of cognitive repetitions, the process of shooting an arrow can be reproduced subconsciously. This is generally known and referred to as “muscle memory.” A novice archer will take some time to aim and release an arrow. As the archer becomes more intent on just concentrating on aiming, the next step in the efficiency of the human brain is for the release to be completely subconsciously linked to the fact that the archer has aimed. Once the mechanical process of shooting a bow can be performed subconsciously, the archer becomes only focused on aiming. When an archer is solely focused on aiming, the release of the arrow along with the rest of the shot is performed substantially subconsciously. Control over when the arrow is released is then out of the archer's control. For example, when an archer is in the process of drawing a bow, the brain “sees” the aim during this drawing process. The brain links the subconscious release right at this time and the arrow is released at various points before the archer reaches full draw. This common malady is often referred to as “snap shooting.” It is a manifestation that involves complete loss of control of the string hand. This problem is rooted in the fact that the conscious mind can only direct one activity at a time. If the conscious mind is totally involved in the aiming process, then the subconscious release of the arrow linked to the aim is expedited. The overall results is the the process of aiming an arrow becomes problematic to the subconscious because aiming is subconsciously connected or correlated to an upcoming shock. The target panic associated with such shock is amplified by other stressors including those experienced by a user during a competitive event, hunting, spectator-induced anxiety, and other influences.